Book Review: Calculated Risk (Triumph Over Adversity #1) by Lynn Shannon

About the Book:

He carries the burden of his mistakes.

The wounds on Jason Gonzalez’s body are nothing compared to the ones on his heart. The former Marine avoids getting close to anyone new, especially his gorgeous next-door neighbor. Until he hears a scream coming from her house in the middle of the night.

Her enemies are too numerous to count.

Addison Foster escaped an abusive marriage and has become an advocate for others. When an intruder breaks into her home and nearly kills her, Addison is rescued by an unlikely protector. But the threats against her aren’t over and she needs help.

Danger around every corner.

Jason makes it his mission to keep Addison safe, but keeping her out of his heart proves impossible. As the threats increase, there’s no room for mistakes. Will his calculated risk pay off or will it end in tragedy?

| Goodreads |

My Review:

Calculated Risk by Lynn Shannon
Rating: 3/5
Pages: 326
Published: April 14, 2021
Series: Triumph Over Adversity

I’ve had this one, well I’d added the whole series actually, on my TBR for a few months, and have seen it around for a while before that. I’ve enjoyed the genre enough to be interested, but I’ve also found Romantic Suspense can easily go either way for me. Some I’ve loved, others not so much.

There were some things I really loved about this one. One of those was Jason’s hobby! I loved that he used art as a positive coping skill. I thought it was an interesting concept, and one I’ve heard of in psychological settings and medical research type topics, but not so much in fiction. It felt right here, and made me enjoy getting to know Jason all the more.

I also loved his K-9 partner, Conner! I have seen an uptick of military and police dogs in fiction, and with anything they can really add to a story, but can also feel cliché and over-done if they are simply added to check off a box, but lack any real purpose or character. Conner was a fun addition in this one, and I loved how he always found a way to Addison’s side, regardless of the situation!

I also enjoyed some of the side-characters and the overall story, but was a bit underwhelmed too. It was a good story, a fun read, and an interesting plot, but it lacked that ‘extra’. It’s not the more memorable story, I’m not eagerly counting the days until I’m able to read the next book, and I’m not partial to any one character.

Did I like them? Yes. Did I enjoy Jason and Addison’s story? Again, yes. But overall I felt like something was missing. I’m not really sure what, but I ended up giving it a 3.5 star rating because it didn’t really jump out and pull me in as I’d hoped it might. The following books may make this a series I’m eager to recommend, and I do recommend it to Christian Romantic Suspense fans, but it just didn’t really stand out as one of the best I’ve read in the genre.

I enjoyed it, and ended on a positive note. I just wish I would more excited to keep reading these, and since that didn’t happen, I’m not really in a rush to read the sequels. They are shorter, and I flew through this one, so they are definitely good as a quite weekend or ‘while I wait’ type read, like at a doctor’s office or while I wait for a class to start though!

(These reviews are always some of the hardest to write! Feeling neutral about something is difficult to explain. I’m sorry about the less than helpful review. It is good! Just probably one of the more forgettable reads I’ll likely read this year, which I hate since it was an entertaining story, but if I’m being honest, I’ve already forgotten parts of it…And I feel horrible even admitting that…)

Other books in the series:
(Below is a list of the other books I’ve read & reviewed for this series)